Is it news to anyone that Michael Brown thinks he got a bum rap on Katrina? As shopworn as was his concatenation of complaint this morning, Matt Lauer treated it with the enthusiasm of a Live at Five reporter on the scene of a fresh accident out on county route 11.

You knew this was coming: Lauer got things off to a Bush-bashing start with the famous "you're doing a heck of a job, Brownie" clip of the president congratulating Brown for his work at the beginning of the relief effort.

Matt moved things along with a series of 'helpful' questions/comments:

Lauer: "You warned the president and no help arrived?"

Brown says he did.

Lauer: "The stupid talking points [defending the relief efforts] should be thrown out the window when people are dying."

Brown agrees.

Lauer: "Do you think that you have been handed all of the blame for this situation? Should the president share the blame?"

Yup!

[Lauer did also ask whether Nagin and Blanco should share the blame.]

Lauer: "You think the president let the people down in handling this?"

Brown: "The thing that bothered me the most is he flew over New Orleans. If he landed and stood there and said I want everybody to give Michael Brown everything he needs, we would not be talking about this."

Almost sounds as if Brownie [and Matt] wish Bill Clinton had been president. After all, as noted here yesterday Clinton was willing to admit that if he had been president during Katrina, he "might have done more."

Finkelstein lives in the liberal haven of Ithaca, NY, where he hosts 'Right Angle,' an award-winning public-access TV show. Contact him at mark@gunhill.net